Portfolio Assignment

SUS1501 – Sustainability and Greed

Student Number:
Date:
Teaching Assistant Name:

Declaration:

By submitting this portfolio, I implicitly declare that this is my own work except for the
“Introduction” which was kindly written for me by my lecturer.

I am aware that if ANY unacknowledged copying is detected in ANY answer, I will get 0 (zero)
for the entire assignment.

Instructions:

 Please read the instructions on myUnisa carefully.

 Please download the most up to date version of this template from the additional resources tool
on myUnisa.
 Go through the MCQs again, and record your current choice in the template (we suggest that
you don’t look at your original choices before you have been through all questions)
 For each question, record your original choice in assignment 1. (If you have forgotten your
original choices, you can find these as in the Self Assessments tool. For Assignment 1 click on
“Feedback” and you will find your choices).
 Jot down AT LEAST 10 notes reflecting on your choices for any of the 20 questions.
 Each note must be AT LEAST 100 words long
 Write your conclusion of AT LEAST 500 words
 Your notes and conclusion should include references to the theory that we covered.
 Your notes and conclusion should also make reference to discussions with fellow students that
you found meaningful.
 Save the file as a Word document with a short name (myUnisa will reject files with long names).
 Submit this file into the Assignments tool on myUnisa.
 Take a screen grab of the final submission acknowledgement on myUnisa and save this
somewhere safe in case of any disputes.
 Check under the Assignments tool that there is a date in the “Processed” cell for the SUS1501
Portfolio.

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MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS CHECKLIST – i.e. if you do not fulfill ALL of these you will NOT pass this
portfolio:

1. Correct template version used

2. All 20 multiple choice question original answers captured
3. All 20 multiple choice question answers now captured
4. Notes for AT LEAST ten (10) questions
5. Each note AT LEAST 100 words long
6. Conclusion present
7. Conclusion AT LEAST 500 words long

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 Introduction
My aim in compiling this portfolio was to reflect on the things that have struck me throughout
this crazy module.

My starting point for doing this was to revisit my opinions to the multiple choice questions
which were presented in the Crossroads assignment. I present these current opinions, together
with my original opinions, and some brief notes in the section entitled: “Back at the
Crossroads!”

Once I have done this, I draw some key conclusions about this crazy module and about the
things that did indeed strike me.

Back at the Crossroads!

1. “Greed is good” My personal opinion of what should be done, is most closely described by:
a. It’s not good or bad. It’s just how things are.
b. Absolutely! If it wasn’t for greed we would never achieve anything.
c. I’m not sure. Sometimes I think that it’s good. At other times I think that it’s bad.
d. It depends on how you define “greed”.
e. Absolutely not! Greed is bad. It leads to much pain and suffering.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

<NB Note: If your inclination here is to say that having done this module you have decided that greed is
indeed good, then by all means go ahead and defend this. However, if you tell us that the course
material has told you that greed is good, then you are very likely to fail this module. The course material
quite explicitly states that greed is not good. If you think that the material says otherwise, then you need
to go and read the material again.>

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2. "#FeesMustFall" My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. I don’t really care about this so long as no-one tries to disrupt my studies.
b. If these people want education let them earn the money to pay for it like me.
c. Education is everyone’s right, not just the right of the rich.
d. Education for everyone is in the interests of the whole country and so it should be fully
funded by the state.
e. #FeesMustFall – see you on the streets Comrades!!!!!!

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

3. “The assets of the three richest people in the world match the combined annual GDP’s of the 48
poorest countries.” My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. Good for them – they worked hard to get their wealth
b. The only problem I have with this is that this money is in their bank account and not in mine
c. No problem with this – many of these people give huge amounts to charities
d. I think that it is morally wrong for anyone to have that much money
e. I think that active steps should be taken to correct such immoral wealth imbalances

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

4. “If arctic ice melting continues, we are likely to see the loss of two thirds of the world's polar bear
population within 50 years.” My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. Who cares?
b. If it boils down to choosing between driving a luxury SUV and worrying about polar bears I’ll
take the car any day.
c. While this is sad, polar bears aren’t really very important to my personal welfare which is my
primary concern.
d. While this is sad, polar bears aren’t really very important to general human social welfare.
e. I don’t think polar bears are all that important to human welfare. However, their plight is a
symptom of climate change which is a big problem to future human welfare.
f. I think it is morally unacceptable for humans to put their interests ahead of the rights of
other species like polar bears.

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Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

5. “ If the present growth trends in world population, industrialization, pollution, food production, and
resource depletion continue unchanged, the limits to growth on this planet will be reached
sometime within the next one hundred years. The most probable result will be a rather sudden and
uncontrollable decline in both population and industrial capacity.” My personal opinion on this
statement is most closely described by:
a. I don’t believe this tale of doom.
b. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast, but I don’t think this is a problem as there
is plenty of time to find technological solutions to problems that emerge
c. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast. The first priority in solving this is to put the
brakes on human population growth.
d. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast. The first priority in solving this is for rich
people to reduce their consumption significantly.
e. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast. The first priority is for poor people to not
have more kids than they can afford.
f. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast. And frankly I don’t see any solution
because increasing consumption is the basis of our economic growth.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

6. “Unless fossil-fuel use slows dramatically, the earth’s average temperature could rise by six degrees
Celsius in the next 100 years.” My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. Who cares?
b. I don’t believe this climate change nonsense
c. Six degrees will make winters much more bearable to me personally
d. I’m a bit concerned about this, but there is nothing that I can do about it
e. I’m a bit concerned about this, but why should I invest my personal time, effort or money in
solving a general social problem
f. I think that individually we can and should strive to solve this problem for the greater good

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Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

7. “I have missed my assignment 6 deadline for SUS1501 because I had an Economics assignment
which is just more important to me.” My personal opinion of what should be done, is most closely
described by:
a. I’m going to a doctor I know to get a doctor’s certificate saying I was sick – I wasn’t really
sick.
b. I’m going to come up with a really tragic story about my best friend passing away in a car
crash and having to attend the funeral – I’m sitting with my best mate now having a good
laugh about this.
c. I really can’t afford to fail this module so I’m going to do A. above even though I really feel
bad about it.
d. I’m not going to do any of the above because there is always a chance that Unisa will find
out and charge me with misconduct.
e. I’m not going to do any of the first three above because eventually Prof Eccles is going to
stop believing these stories and then someone who really does have a problem is going to
suffer.
f. I’m not going to do any of the first three above because they are morally wrong.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

8. "The wealth of the few depends upon the poverty of many." My personal opinion on this statement
is most closely described by:
a. So long as I am amongst the few I don't care
b. This is just not true – the rich are simply more “diligent, intelligent, and above all frugal”.
c. This is just not true – if it were not for the generous wealthy, the poor would be even poorer
than they are.
d. This is absolutely true – there is only so much wealth in the world at any one moment so if
one person has more than their share someone else has to have less than their share
e. This is absolutely true and given how much poverty there is we ought to do something
about it

Choice now:

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Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

9. “One out of every five South Africans lives below the food poverty line.” My personal opinion on this
statement is most closely described by:
a. Who cares?
b. If population growth rates of the poor were not so high they wouldn’t be so poor.
c. If they worked harder, they wouldn't be so poor.
d. This is sad, but to be honest, it is not going to stop me from focusing on my own wellbeing
first.
e. I think that we must all strive to eliminate poverty together.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

10. “Every day some 20,000 children die prematurely from poverty related causes, mostly treatable
diseases.” My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. Who cares?
b. It’s hard to say it, but given the rising human population, perhaps this is a blessing in
disguise for the human species as a whole
c. It’s hard to say it, but this just means less people competing with me for scarce
opportunities and resources.
d. This is morally wrong, but practically, I think that it would cost too much money to solve
e. It is morally unacceptable for a single child to die of a preventable disease and we should
collectively fix this irrespective of the cost.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

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11. “In 2010, Whitey Basson the CEO of Shoprite earned ZAR 620,000,000.00.” My personal opinion on
this statement is most closely described by:
a. Good for him – he worked hard to earn this.
b. The only problem I have with this is that this money is in Basson’s bank account and not in
mine.
c. No problem with this. I'm sure Basson donates huge amounts to charities.
d. I think that it is morally wrong for anyone to earn that much money.
e. I think that active steps should be taken to correct such immoral executive remuneration
practices

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

12. “Imagine you find out that some students get together, buy good assignments from previous years
and submit them as their own.” My personal opinion about this practice is most closely described
by:
a. I have heard that Unisa might be using sophisticated plagiarism detecting software like
Turnitin and, if this is the case, the chances of getting caught are just too great. I don't want
to get into trouble.
b. Not only will I participate, I am going to be the one who sells assignments next year for cash.
c. I am not sure what the rules say but if this is against the rules I won’t do it.
d. I am not sure what is the right thing to do here or what is expected of me now that I know
this?
e. The problem with cheating is that it undermines everyone's qualification, not just those who
are participating
f. Someone needs to report this because it is intellectual fraud, and that someone is going to
be me.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

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Notes:

13. “It is estimated that humans are consuming natural resource at a rate that is 30% above the
renewal rate. If we continue to consume in this way we are likely to suffer dire consequences which
could include extinction.” My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast, but I don’t think this is a problem as there
is plenty of time to find technological solutions to problems that emerge
b. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast. The first priority in solving this is to put the
brakes on human population growth.
c. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast. The first priority in solving this is for rich
people to reduce their consumption significantly.
d. Yes we are consuming natural resources too fast. And frankly I don’t see any solution
because increasing consumption is the basis of our economic growth.
e. I don’t believe this tale of doom.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

14. "You won’t make the poor rich by making the rich poor." My personal opinion of what should be
done is most closely described by:
a. This is rubbish and we should attack extreme wealth wherever it arises.
b. This is the sort of trite rhetoric that the rich try and sell to the world in order to protect their
privilege.
c. This is rubbish. If a few take a huge share, it leaves that much less for the rest. It’s simple
maths.
d. This is absolutely true. Without the money that the rich have, the poor would be that much
worse off and lefty socialists would do well to understand this fact.
e. Since my personal aim is to be rich, my opinion here is simple – just leave the rich alone.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

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15. "Hard work always pays!!" My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. I absolutely believe this.
b. The evidence supports this – look at the likes of Bill Gates.
c. Perhaps this works sometimes.
d. The evidence doesn't support this – look at mine workers in South Africa.
e. I just don't believe this.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

16. "In 2014, Whitey Basson donated boerewors valued at R100 000 to schools in the country.” My
personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. If it were not for the good people like Basson, the lives of the poor would be so much worse
than they already are.
b. As with most wealthy people, Basson clearly takes his responsibility to society very seriously.
c. R100 000 is about 0.016% of the R620 million he earned in 2010. So if he had earned R 1
million he would have donated R161 worth of boerewors.
d. All this charity just makes rich people look like heroes that they are not.
e. How can you possibly say something as ungrateful as option d?

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

17. "Save the rhino!!" My personal opinion on this statement is most closely described by:
a. Why?
b. Let the people who want to use this resource pay to protect it.
c. We have bigger problems than worrying about rhinos.
d. We must save the rhinos for our children.
e. We must save the rhinos because it is the right thing to do.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

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Notes:

18. "With a shift of only 2 percent of global household income, all the great deprivations of the poorer
half of humankind could be avoided." My personal opinion on this statement is most closely
described by:
a. Who cares?
b. Let the poorest work for their money like the rest of us.
c. So long as no one takes 2 percent of my income.
d. Just proves - if poverty was an issue for the rich we would solve it by throwing money at it.
e. Let's solve it then!

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

19. “A woman was near death from a rare form of cancer. There was one medicine that the doctors
thought might perhaps prolong her life. This was sold at the only local pharmacy at 10 times the
cost. The woman had no medical aid cover and her only son could simply not afford the medicine.”
The most ethical option available to the son is best described by:
a. The son should not steal the medicine because he might end up in prison.
b. He should steal the medicine regardless of a possible prison sentence because saving his
mother for a few more months would bring them the most happiness.
c. He should not steal the medicine because stealing is bad and he is not a criminal; he tried to
do everything he could without breaking the law so no one can blame him for the
consequences.
d. The son should steal the medicine but also accept the prescribed punishment for the crime
and eventually pay the pharmacist what he is owed; actions should have consequences.
e. He should steal the medicine because everyone has a right to life, regardless of the law.
f. He should not steal the medicine, because others who are fortunate enough to be able to
pay for it may need the medicine just as badly. Their lives are equally significant.

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

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20. “Do not lose sight of what creates wealth. It is open markets, it is capitalism.” My personal opinion
on this statement is most closely described by:
a. Absolutely – any threats to the free market must be squashed
b. Yes – capitalism is how we create wealth, but the markets must still be managed a little
c. I’m not sure about this – I think that it might be time to consider some sort of different
economic system
d. No – the market needs to be extensively managed to ensure that the wealth that is created
is good wealth rather than bad wealth
e. Rubbish – capitalism creates monstrous wealth for a few and abject poverty for many. We
need a much more equitable economic system

Choice now:

Choice in assignment 1:

Notes:

Summary
Number unchanged: <Insert number of questions where the answers were the same here>
Number changed: <Insert number of questions where the answers were different here>

Conclusion

To conclude, looking at the preceding sections of this portfolio, the most important things which I
learned in this module were: <complete this in a few paragraphs.

NB: This should be the most substantial comment in this portfolio and must give us a clear indication
whether you have thought deeply about this module. It should be at least 500 words long. >

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